Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Moses Intercedes for Israel

⁷ The Lord told Moses, “Go down immediately,^[a] because your people whom you led out of Egypt have behaved corruptly. ⁸ They have been quick to turn aside from the way I commanded them, and they have made for themselves a molten calf. They have bowed down to it in worship, they have offered sacrifices to it, and they have said, ‘This, Israel, is your god who brought you out of the land of Egypt.’”

⁹ Then the Lord told Moses, “I’ve seen these people and indeed they’re obstinate.^{[b] 10} Now let me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may consume them, but I’ll make a great nation of you.”

¹¹ But Moses implored the Lord his God: “Lord, why are you angry with your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a show of force?^{[c] 12} Why should the Egyptians say, ‘He brought them out with an evil intention to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your anger and change your mind about the calamity against your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants to whom you swore by yourself as you told them, ‘I’ll increase the number of your descendants like the stars of the heavens, I’ll give your descendants all of this land about which I have spoken, and they are to possess^[d] it forever.’”

¹⁴ So the Lord changed his mind about the calamity he had said he would bring on his people.

To the Director: A Davidic Psalm. When the prophet Nathan came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

A Prayer for Cleansing and Pardon

¹² I thank the Messiah^[a] Jesus, our Lord, who gives me strength, that he has considered me faithful and has appointed me to his service. ¹³ In the past I was a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a violent^[b] man. But I received mercy because I acted ignorantly in my unbelief, ¹⁴ and the grace of our Lord overflowed toward me,^[c] along with the faith and love that are in the Messiah^[d] Jesus. ¹⁵ This is a trustworthy saying that deserves complete acceptance:^[e]

I am the worst of them. ¹⁶ But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the worst sinner,^[h] the Messiah^[i] Jesus might demonstrate all of his patience as an example for those who would believe in him for eternal life. ¹⁷ Now to the King Eternal—the immortal, invisible, and only God—be honor and glory forever and ever! Amen.

The Parable about the Faithful Shepherd^(A)

15 Now all the tax collectors and sinners kept coming to listen to Jesus.^{[a] 2} But the Pharisees and the scribes kept complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” ³ So he told them this parable:

⁴ “Suppose one of you has 100 sheep and loses one of them. He leaves the 99 in the wilderness and looks for the one that is lost until he finds it, doesn’t he? ⁵ When he finds it, he puts it on his shoulders and rejoices. ⁶ Then he goes home, calls his friends and neighbors together, and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I’ve found my lost sheep!’ ⁷ In the same way, I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don’t need to repent.”

The Story of the Diligent Housewife

⁸ “Or suppose a woman has ten coins and loses one of them.^[b] She lights a lamp, sweeps the house, and searches carefully until she finds it, doesn’t she? ⁹ When she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found the coin that I lost!’ ¹⁰ In the same way, I tell you that there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”